Sisters

“Of course. The way you are now. You could stay over whenever you want.”

“My very own harem,” he said with a wry grin. It sounded a little crazy to him, but was typical of them. He had never known four sisters quite like them, and without question, they took care of their own, more than most. And without their mother at the helm, he could sense Sabrina stepping into her shoes, to mother all of them. He knew that if she took it seriously, it was going to be a challenge for her, and maybe for him too. But he was willing to listen and see where they went with her idea. He could see advantages to it too, particularly for Annie, in her moment of need, initially anyway. In the long run, as hard as it was, Annie would have to find her way. Sabrina knew that too. But at least at first, they could help. And Sabrina had the feeling her mother would have approved of her plan.

“That's great for you,” Tammy said practically, looking a little unnerved by the idea. “You both live in New York. I live in L.A. What am I supposed to do? Quit my job? And then what? I'd be out of work in New York. And the show is going to be bigger than ever this year.” She loved her sister, but she couldn't give up everything for her. She had worked so hard for what she had.

“Can't you work in television here?” Sabrina asked. She knew embarrassingly little about her sister's business, despite how successful she was.

“There are no decent shows here,” Tammy said quietly. Sometimes she hated it when Sabrina came up with these harebrained schemes. “The only shows here are soaps, and a couple of reality shows. That's a major step down for me. And a huge salary cut.” She could afford it, since she had put plenty of money aside, but she didn't like playing with her career, and she really didn't want to leave the show. It was her baby now.

“What about you?” Sabrina asked Candy, who was thinking about it.

“I hate to give up my penthouse,” she said wistfully, and then smiled. “But I guess I could sublet it for a year. It would be fun living with the two of you.” She actually liked the idea. She was lonely at times in her own place, and she wouldn't be if she lived with them. Her sisters were great company, and she knew Annie needed them.

“Why don't I see what I can find that would be big enough for the three of us? And when Annie is ready for it, we can suggest the idea to her. I don't care about my apartment. I don't love it anyway. Chris, would you care?” she asked him, as part of the family, and he shook his head.

“As long as I can stay over and your sisters don't mind. It might get a little crazy at times. That's a lot of women under one roof, with three of you, but it might be fun for a year. And you can always stay with me,” Chris pointed out to Sabrina, and she nodded. As long as someone was home to help Annie, which was the whole point of it. But Candy was in town at least some of the time. The whole idea was to help get Annie on her feet and used to her blindness. And knowing how resourceful and determined Annie was, Sabrina thought a year might do it, as long as she wasn't in the depths of depression, which she hoped she wouldn't be.

“I really like the idea,” Sabrina said, and Candy giggled.

“Yeah, me too. Like going to boarding school,” which she had always wanted to do, and their mother wouldn't let her. She wanted to enjoy her last child at home, and she had never believed in boarding school. She believed in family. And so did they, which was at the root of Sabrina's idea. Their main goal was to help Annie. She was going to need them now, and this was one way to help her. Chris was actually impressed by the idea. Tammy was the only holdout, understandably, since she had a major career in L.A.

“And we'll be close enough to Dad, if he needs us. This is going to be a tough adjustment for him too.”

“What if you all hate it?” Tammy asked cautiously.

“Then I guess we give it up, and go back to our own places. A year isn't very long. I think we could stand each other for a year, don't you?”

“Maybe,” Tammy answered. “We haven't really lived together since before college. You left sixteen years ago. I left eleven. Annie left eight years ago, and Candy was an only child after we left. This should be interesting,” Tammy said with a grin. “Maybe the reason we get along is because we don't live together. Did you ever think of that?”